Work counter for typewriters



Jan. 26, 1932. Q, HOKANSON 1,842,671

WORK COUNTER FOR TYPEWRITERS Filed Dec. 24, 1925 2 Sheets-Sheet l JIIVGHZOW MK M Jan. 26, 1932. HO-KANSQN 1,842,671

WORK COUNTER FOR TYPEWRITERS Filed Dec. 24, 1923 .2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Jan. 26, 1932 UNITED STATES PATENT; OFFICE I: i OTTO A. HOKANSON, OF WOODSTOCK, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO WOODSTOCK TYPEWRITER COMPANY, OF WOODSTOCK, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS WORK COUNTER FOR TYPEWRITERS Application filed December 24, 1923. Serial No. 682,411.

This invention relates to means for registeringi the amount of work done, by a typewriter operator and has for its object the provision of a device of this nature which shall be economical to manufacture, easy to attach -toa typewriting machine, simple in its construction and operation, and which cannot be tampered with to produce a false register.

10 Other objects will appear hereinafter.

The invention is exemplified in the combination and arrangement of parts shown in the accompanying drawings and described in the following specification, and it is more 5 particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings Fig. 1 is a fragmentary elevation, with parts in section, showing one embodiment of 2c the present invention as applied to a Woodstock typewriter;

"Fig. 2 is an elevation of the work counter viewed from the opposite direction of that shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. '3 is a rearview of the work counter as applied to a typewriter; and

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary elevation showing a detail of construction.

YIn many establishments it is desirable to so accurately register the amount of work done upon a given typewriter for a particular period. This may be for the purpose of keeping a record of the work done by the operator or for forming a basis upon which to charge 35 for a particular job, or for various other purposes. v t

It is apparent that the mostaccurate record is one which shall take account of every stroke made uponthe machine. A record of this kind is a more accurate measure of the actual work done than is a record of the number of letters'written or the number of pages or words produced.

In the embodiment of the invention shown 4 in the drawings, the numeral designates thebackplate or bar of a standard lVoodstock typewriter and the numeral 11 designatesj the top plate provided with a journal bearing 12 in which the escapem'ent shaft 13 50 ismounted. The'shaft 13 carries an escapement Wheel 14 and a pinion 15 with which the carriage rack meshes. The rotation of the escapement wheel 1a is controlled by the usual dog 16 mounted on a support 17 which oscillates at each stroke of the machine.

The support 17 is provided with a universal bar 18 at its forward end, the universal bar being positioned in the path of the type bars 19 so that at each type bar stroke the member 17 is oscillated. The rear end of the member 17 is supported by a pair of hangers 2O pivoted at 21 on a bracket 22 attached to the main frame 11. The construction thus far described is similar to that of Patent No. 1,276,118, granted August 20, 1918, to Alvah U. Roebuck, and assigned to the Woodstock Typewriter Company.

The type bars 19 are actuated by suitable key levers connected to the type bars by means of sub-levers 23. A. counter 24 of any wellknown construction having a rotary shaft 25 by which the counting mechanism is operated is mounted upon a bracket 26 by means of screws 27. The bracket 26 is clamped to the frame plate 10 by means of a clamping plate 28 having a thumb screw 29 threaded therethrough and provided with a lock nut 30.

A ratchet wheel 31 is secured to the end of the shaft 25 and is enclosed in a casing 32 supported by a bracket arm 33 extending laterally from the bracket 26. A second arm 34 is secured to the bracket 26 and carries a spring tongue 35 for engaging the teeth of the ratchet wheel 31, thus forming a detent for preventing reverse rotation of the ratchet wheel.

The hanger 20 is provided with .a removable extension 36 having .a perforation therethrough for receiving the screw 37 by which the member 17 is supported upon the lower end of the hanger. An army 38 projects upwardly from the extension 36 and is providcd with a pair of fingers 39 which are bent about the arm 20 to hold the extension 36 rigid with the arm. The lower end of the arm 36 has a projecting pin or stud 41 which engages a slot 42 in a rocker bar 43 pivot-ally mounted on the shaft 25, as shown in Figs. 3 and at. The upper end of the arm 43 carries a pawl 46 pivoted thereon in position to engage the ratchet wheel 31. The end of the arm a3 is bent to form an abutment plate 47 and a spring IS is interposed between the pawl 46 and the plate 47 to press the nose of the pawl. against the ratchet wheel.

It willbe apparent that each oscillation of the hanger will oscillate the pawl itand the parts may be so proportioned that the ratchet wheel 31 will be advanced onetooth for each movement of the hanger 20. Other ratios may, of course, be adapted if desired and the counter may be geared to register one for each oscillation of the hanger 2 or for each ten oscillations or other multiple found desirable. V

The casing for the counter is usually provided with an. opening 49 through which the readings of the counter may be taken. It should be noted that the operation of the counter depends directly upon each movement of the universal bar which occurs each time a key struck. This gives an accurate registration of the actual work done upon the machine and also makes it practically impossible to produce a false registration since it would require as much time and more effort to oscillate the parts which operate the counter than it would to actually produce useful work upon the machine.

This arrangement is different from that in which a counter is driven by the platen carriage or by the escapement mechanism which is connected with the carriage, for in a device of that kind the count may be rapidly run up by releasing the control for the escapement and moving the carriage back and forth across the machine independently of the writing mechanism. It should be noted that the ratchet wheel is encased in a cover so that only a sufiicient number of the teeth are exposed to permit operation of the pawl. This makes it impossible to rotate the ratchet wheel by movement of a body continuously in contact with its periphery.

I claim 1. In a typewriter, the combination with a reciprocating member connected to a universal bar to be operated by a' type bar, of an oscillatory lever pivoted at its upper end to the frame of the typewriter and its lower end to the rear end of said reciprocating member, counter-mechanism, and connections between said oscillating lever and said counter-mechanism to operate the latter upon each stroke of such type bar.

2. In .a typewriter, the combination with a reciprocating member having its forward end connected to a universal bar with the latter in position to be actuated by a type bar stroke, of counter-mechanism, and c011- nections to the counter-mechanism and to the rear end of said reciprocating member to efiect operation of the counter-me'chanism by such type bar stroke.

8. In a typewriter, the combination with a universal bar associated with a type bar, of a reciprocating member, an oscillating lever pivoted at one end to the frame of the typewriter and at the other end to the rear end of said reciprocating member, a counter mounted on the f ame of the typewriter, pawl and ratchet mechanism for operating said counter, an actuating lever connected to the pawl of said pawl and ratchet mechanism and mounted for oscillation on the axis of the latter, and an actuating extension rigidly connected to said first-named oscillating lever and having a pin and slotconnection to said actuating lever.

4. In a typewriter, the combination with a counter, of a ratchet wheel connected thereto, a pawl for the ratchet wheel, a pivoted lever carrying said pawl, a universal bar in position on the typewriter to be reciprocated upon operation of a type bar, a reciprocating member connected to said universal bar to move bodily therewith, an oscillating lever pivoted at one end to the frame of the typewriter and at the other end to the rear end of said reciprocating member, and an actuator secured to said oscillatory lever and having a pin and slot connection to said pawl carrying lever.

5. In a typewriter, the combination with a counter, of a ratchet wheel connected to said counter to operate the same, a lever mounted to oscillate on the axis of said ratchet wheel, a pawl engaging said ratchet wheel and carried by said lever, a horizontally reciprocating actuator, a pin and slot connection between said actuator and said lever, a swinging hanger on a fixed pivot at its upper end and pivoted at its lower end to the rear end of said actuator, and mechanism operated by the operation of the typewriter for oscillating horizontally said actuator while swinging said hanger and through said pin and slot connection effecting operation of said pawl and ratchet wheel to in turn operate the counter.

6. In a typewriter, the combination with a counter, of a ratchet wheel connected thereto, a pawl for the ratchet wheel, an upwardly extending pivoted lever carrying the pawl, a universal bar in position on the typewriter to be reciprocated horizontally upon operation of a type-bar, a horizontally reciprocating member connected to said universal bar to move bodily therewith, an oscillating lever pivoted at its upper end to the frame of the typewriter and at its lower end to the rear end of said reciprocating member, and a connection between said member and said lever to effect swinging movements of the latter while said universal bar is reciprocated horizontally.

7. In a typewriter, the combination with a shiftable member connected to the universal bar, with the latter in position to be actuated by a type bar stroke, of counter mechanism and connections to the counter mechanism andto said member to efiect operation of the counter mechanism by such type bar stroke. In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification on this 19th day of December, A. D. 1923.

OTTO A. HOKANSON. 

